Aki Jones (October 25, 1982 – October 12, 2014) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player, who played in

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

for

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

in 2005 season. He signed a 3-year contract to the Washington Redskins as an Undrafted Free Agent at the end of the

2005 NFL draft The 2005 NFL draft, the 70th in league history, took place on April 23 and 24, 2005 NFL season, 2005. The draft was held at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City and was televised for the 26th consecutive year, with coverage on E ...

. He also played professionally in Europe for several teams, but played in Poland Polish American Football Association and Finland

Vaahteraliiga The Vaahteraliiga (Maple League) founded in 1980 is the highest level of American football in Finland played under American Football Association of Finland. The winner of the Vaahteraliiga is the Finnish champion. The Vaahteraliiga season is play ...

for much of his European career. Jones played a cameo role in a 2011 Polish comedy ''Wojna żeńsko-męska'' (''The Female-Male War''). Aki Jones died in car accident in

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

High school

Christ the King Regional High School

Born in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, Jones initially attended St. John's Prep High School in Queens, NY in 2000. While at St. John's he played only basketball due to them not having a football team. in 2001, his Sophomore year, he transferred to Christ the King Regional H.S in Middle Village, Queens so that he could have the opportunity to play football. His senior year, he received All-City and All League Honors. Jones was selected to play in CHSFL (Catholic High School Football League) All-Star game and represented New York City in the annual NYC vs Long Islan
Outback Steakhouse Empire Challenge

Deerfield Academy

Jones attended

Deerfield Academy Deerfield Academy (often called Deerfield or DA) is an Independent school, independent College-preparatory school, college-preparatory boarding and day school in Deerfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1797, it is one of the oldest secondary schoo ...

in Deerfield, Massachusetts for a

postgraduate year A postgraduate (PG) year is an extra year of secondary coursework at a boarding school following high school graduation, but before entering college. It is a gap year option intended for students who either have not applied or were not admitt ...

. While at Deerfield he played varsity football, basketball and track and field. In his first year of track and field Jones placed 5th in New England's Regional Meet in the discus and shot put.

College career

In 2001 Jones attended

Fordham University Fordham University is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in New York City, United States. Established in 1841, it is named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in which its origina ...

in the Bronx, New York. Jones contribute on both O Line and D Line his freshman year. Jones was a starter his junior and senior year. In 2003 Jones received First-team All-Patriot League Honors. During his senior year, he received Lindy's Pre-Season 1-AA Second-team All-American and Second-team All-Patriot League Honors. Jones finished his career at Fordham with a 2002 Patriot League Championship and team leader in sacks for three consecutive years 2002, 2003, and 2004. He graduated from the

Gabelli School of Business The Gabelli School of Business is the undergraduate and graduate business school of Fordham University, a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City, New York (state), New York. Fordham Univers ...

in 2009.

NFL

Jones signed with the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in April 2005. Jones spent the opening day roster on the practice squad but was elevated to active roster by week 2. Jones appeared in his first game on November 6, 2005, against the Philadelphia Eagles where he registered his first tackle. In the

2005 NFL season The 2005 NFL season was the 86th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). Regular season play was held from September 8, 2005, to January 1, 2006. The regular season also saw the first ever regular season game played outside the ...

he played in four games which remains his only season.

European career

In March 2007, Jones moved to Poland where he worked as President/Creator of the ''Super Flag Bol'' league in

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

, which is the first junior high school

flag football Flag football is a variant of gridiron football (American football or Canadian football depending on location) where, instead of Tackle (football move)#Gridiron football, tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or ...

league in Poland. Jones was also a player for

The Crew Wrocław ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

an American football club in the

Polish American Football League The Polish American Football League or shortly PLFA () was a structured system for the American football competitions in Poland founded in 2004 by the Polish federation PZFA. In 2012, the Topliga was created as a major league with a bid (invitati ...

. He also played for the

Warsaw Eagles The Warsaw Eagles are an American football team in Warsaw, Poland. They play in the Polish Football League. Paul Kusmierz is the owner of the team. History The team was founded in 1999 by a group of NFL enthusiasts consisting of Jędrzej Stasze ...

in Poland's top league. In 2011, he moved to Sweden and joined the Arlanda Jets, who play in the Swedish

Superserien Superserien is the highest level of American football in Sweden, founded 1984 and became official in 1991. The number of teams in the top league has varied through the years, ranging from 4 to 10. Superserien 2025 The Superserien 2025 will feat ...

. In 2013, he signed with Turku Trojans who play in the

Maple League the top level in Finland. In 2013, he moved to Brazil and declared to participate in the LFA, which is the Brazilian NFL. During the summer, he joined the

Turku Trojans Turku Trojans is one of the oldest American football teams in Finland, established in 1982. Turku Trojans in 2024 play in Division 2 (Tier 3). The Trojans previously have played in the Maple League Vaahteraliiga (highest level) in Finland operate ...

for the 2014 season, the Trojans were then playing in the Finnish 1st division, the second highest level league in Finland. Jones had returned from Europe prior to his death, and had taken a position as a Group Sales Account Executive with the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

. He died in a car accident in October 2014.

References

External links

* (Polish
SuperFlagBol.com
* (Polish
filmweb.pl profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Aki 1982 births 2014 deaths American football defensive ends Deerfield Academy alumni Fordham Rams football players Gabelli School of Business alumni Washington Redskins players Players of American football from Queens, New York People from Jamaica, Queens American expatriate sportspeople in Poland American expatriate sportspeople in Sweden American expatriate sportspeople in Finland American expatriate sportspeople in Brazil American expatriate players of American football Road incident deaths in Florida Vaahteraliiga players